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Saturday, July 19, 2014

Chapter Seven: Siren's Call

"Sisters, she comes." the voice purred, the sound of a thousand voices.

"Sing Sisters! Sing the Song, for tonight another shall join us!"

Ava silently made her way to Siren's Cove, fearful that at any time Morgan would discover her, but he wouldn't would he? His lies would have her believe he was on the battlefield, leading his men to a hard earned victory. She knew the truth though, he was with his lover, and tonight she would have proof of his infidelity.

She slipped her sandals off, leaving them, and walked barefoot on the cool sand. The night air shimmered in the mist, the dampness clung to her skin like a paramour's kiss. All was still, there was no breeze, only the Song. The Song that filled Ava's heart with longing.

She listened to the words as she walked to the shoreline, every step she took, the Song swelled in strength and urgency.

This is Our song, Our song of mourning Of broken hearts and wounded spirits Come ye who are weary and heavy laden Come to us, you poor precious soul

Rest yourself within our small circle The Circle of Sisters who share Every pain and anguish That crushes the spirit

Come with us, and be whole once more Rest yourself within our small circle Come to us you poor precious soul Come with us and be whole once more!

"What troubles you, Child of the Sea?" The velvety voice startled Ava, and the song faded away. She turned towards the voice. There in the mist, a woman appeared, with long wavy hair and eyes that glittered in the strange light. Ava hardly noticed the women behind her, so entranced was she by the woman who stood in front of her.

"I seek my husband, have you seen him?"

The woman laughed softly. "Why would you seek your husband here, in this forsaken Cove?"

"I was told he meets his lover here, and that they would be here, this very night."

The woman smiled. "Is that so? Look around you Ava, wife of the Stone King, and tell me, what do you see?"

Ava looked, and there, in the distance she could see him. Morgan. He was with that woman, the one that she had run into so many moons ago. Ava felt her heart splinter into shards beneath her breast, as she watched him tenderly kiss his lover. "No!" she screamed, not ready for the truth, despite what she had thought otherwise.

The Song started again, softly. It spoke of wayward husbands, feckless hearts, shattered dreams. Above all, it spoke of Peace, and rest, of rebirth. Ava sunk to her knees, and sobbed. "Morgan! I loved you! You promised me fidelity, when I did not ask it, and made me fall for you! How could you?" The tears ran as rivers down her cheeks, but she didn't bother to wipe them off.

"Ava, dear child, how it breaks my heart to see you this way! Do you want the pain to end, to go away forever?"

"Oh yes!" she cried. "Please, take this pain from me!"

"Then follow me child, and be whole once more!" Ava stood up, as if in a trance, and followed the woman to the edge of the Sea.

The waves licked her toes, and Ava hesitated, staring out past the Sea. "Come my Child," the woman crooned softly. "Come to me, and leave all your troubles, and cares, and heartaches behind. Come with me." Ava felt her feet moving, slowly at first but gaining momentum, as she stepped into the Sea, following the Voice. Following the Song.

Ava felt no fear, as the water closed over her head. She could feel the change stealing over her body, her legs had disappeared, and in their place, a golden tail. She breathed in the water, and sighed happily as all her memories slid away, and with them, the pain.

~<>~

"Come Sisters, to the shore, we have company."

Morgan raced frantically down towards the shore, hoping he wasn't too late, but he feared the worst. What had possessed her to leave in the middle of the night? And for Siren's Cove! She knew he had forbidden her from ever going there, the dangers were many, whether male or female. "Your Highness! Wait!" Lord Ember shouted out, but Morgan waved him back.

"Stay there for the sake of the Living One, or you too may perish!" Morgan spared no further thought for his friend, he needed to find his wife. He skittered to a sudden stop, and felt a chill creep over his heart. "Circe."

"Well, well, Sisters, look what we have here, the Stone King himself." Circe said in a honeyed tone.

He fell down on the sand in front of her. "I love her, she does not belong to you, she belongs with me."

"Your wife came willingly." Circe said icily.

"Please, have mercy Circe, return her to me, and to her children."

Circe laughed unpleasantly. "Mercy, Stone King? I no longer possess a heart, or did you forget that?"

"I did not forget, I only hoped..."

"Hope?" Circe scoffed. "Hope is for fools."

"Then I am a fool." Morgan said sadly, throwing away his pride. Pride was of little comfort to him now. "If you will not return her for mercy's sake, then take me in exchange for her."

The Siren's faces all broke into broad grins, their pointy teeth glinting in the pale sunlight. "Tempting indeed, Stone King. You know what we do with males." The heat in her eyes scorched his skin as she looked his body over, and he suppressed a shudder. "We mate with him, until he nearly dies from exhaustion, some men enjoy this, at least at first. When we are done with him, then we tear his flesh into pieces as we devour him, bite by agonizing bite."

Morgan nodded his head. "I know."

"And yet, you would be willing to trade your life for hers?"

Morgan didn't hesitate. "Yes, and a thousand times yes."

"Rise Stone King." Circe commanded, and Morgan obeyed.

"As tempting as you are, you know the ancient laws as well as I do, King of Stone." She spit the last words out. "We cannot harm you, or any of your blood, without enacting a curse upon our heads, did you think I had forgotten that? Your wife on the other hand, was already a water elemental, and has always belonged to us. She is where she belongs, and now you must go back to where you belong."

"Circe, I..." Before he could get his words out, the Sirens had returned to the water, and within moments had disappeared from sight. Morgan ran into the Sea, calling Ava's name, calling Circe's name, shouting until he was too hoarse, until there was nothing left of his voice but a husky shadow.

He felt the tug on his clothes, and he fought it off. "Your highness, you must get out of the water!" Lord Ember shouted. "Come on, let's get you home, there is nothing we can do here."

"They have taken her." he whispered, tears in his eyes.

"I know." Lord Ember said in a gentler tone of voice. "You still have young children that need you, and a Kingdom that needs you. It's time to go home."

~<>~

"You must do exactly as I say, word for word, do you understand me Ianthe?" Belle detested having to repeat herself, but Ianthe could be such a silly chit, she did not want the plan ruined before it even started.

"You promised me that I would have the King." Ianthe said sullenly. "I do not see how I will get the King if he thinks I am her."

Belle glared at Ianthe. "Because you nitwit, he's in love with her, and not with you. If he sees you, he will order your death. If he sees her, well, then, that will give you an opportunity to have his daughter. Your daughter shall marry my son, and together, they will rule this Kingdom."

Ianthe rubbed her flat stomach. "A daughter."

"You must have a daughter Ianthe, for the plan to succeed. So I have some herbs for you to eat as well, they will make you more fertile, and more likely to have a daughter."

"Listen carefully, this is a powerful charm, even still, it has it's limits. It will only work on the night of a new moon. On that night alone he will see only her, and he will hear only her. You try any other night, and you will find yourself hanging in the town square."

"Yes cousin."

"You must get him to promise you on that night, that no matter what, he will not let Ianthe the maid go. This way you may do as you please around others, and he will not stop you."

"Why don't you just give me a love potion?" Ianthe argued. "It seems so much simpler and easier, and then he will love only me, and I will be his Queen."

Belle laughed bitterly. "You think a love potion is so easy then?" She shook her head. "You silly chit, if it were as easy as a love potion, then I would not need you at all. I would use it myself. He belongs to the Earth, and rules it, and as such, the simplest of potions will not work on him, let alone a love one." She sneered. "This little charm will only work because he loves her, and he will want to believe it is her."

Even as much as Belle loathed Morgan, still, she would have used the charm herself, and bound Morgan to her with a child, a son, if she could have. Unfortunately, the King knew her body too intimately, and he would instantly know who she was. Ianthe was her best choice, her body was similar enough to Ava that she could pass for the Queen in the darkness of the night.

Ianthe frowned as another thought occurred to her. "What of his bratlings?"

"All in good time Ianthe, all in good time. You must have a daughter before we can do away with the King's spawn. Without a daughter, my son will marry the Princess Charis instead, and you will stay what you are. A maid, and a whore."

"I don't like it." Ianthe muttered. "The Princeling does not like me, and I do not like him. He is a horrible brat, and I should like to drown him in the Sea."

"Well," Belle responded thoughtfully," once you have a daughter, you may the kill the Princeling, but not by the Sea, oh no!" Belle said adamantly. "There is a slight chance that his mother will recognize him, and save him. No, he will have to die in a more creative way than that."

Ianthe brightened up. "Very well, I shall think on that whenever I must deal with the brat." She tapped her chin thoughtfully. "What is the best way to kill a Princeling?"

"It will not be easy." Belle warned. In fact, doing so would more than likely enact a curse upon Ianthe's head, but Belle did not care, and Ianthe did not need to know. Ianthe would serve her purpose, and the Ever Living One would mete out the consequences of it to Ianthe, and not Belle. Belle won either way.

~<>~

"Papa?" Taliesin let go of his sister's small hand, and she promptly plopped onto the floor.

"Goggy!" she gurgled happily.

"Papa?" Taliesin asked again, a little louder.

This time Morgan responded, but he did not look at Taliesin. "Yes Tal?" Morgan said in a weary voice.

"Where did Mama go?" She had not been home for weeks, and no one would speak of her, no one would answer his questions other than to tell him to ask his father. His father had been so quiet, so unlike himself, and when Taliesin had asked his questions, his father had simply patted him on the head and then disappeared into his rooms, locking the door behind him. Taliesin was determined that tonight he would find out what had happened to his mother.

Still without looking at Taliesin, Morgan answered. "It depends on how you look at it." He murmured.

"Papa, when is she coming home?"

Morgan looked at his son then. "She is not." He said starkly. "The Sea has her now."

"Can't we get her back? I can swim!" Taliesin said eagerly.

Morgan shook his head sadly. "No, Tal, I'm afraid not. It doesn't work that way. Your mother chose the Sea, and that is where she will stay, forever more."

Taliesin stared down at his boots. Chose the Sea? He didn't understand any of what his father was saying. Why couldn't they just go get her from the Sea? "Why Papa?"

"Come here Tal, and I will tell you a tale, the tale of Circe, her Sirens, and our ancestors, and then you will know why."

~<>~

It was the first new moon, and Ianthe slipped quietly into the King's chamber. He was stretched out on the bed, fast asleep. The beauty of him took her breath away, and she was so excited that tonight, he would finally be hers, and hers alone.

She carefully climbed into the bed beside him, and then eased herself on top of him. She softly kissed his bare chest, and worked her way up to his mouth. He stirred sleepily, "Ava?"

Ianthe's lips twisted, how she hated that name, but she was mindful of what Belle had told her. For now, he must believe that she was Ava. "Yes, my Love, I am here."

"How could this be? Am I dreaming?" Ianthe kissed him again, fully on the lips, giving into her passion, and she was exulted when she felt him responding. Their kisses deepened, growing more and more heated. Morgan groaned. "Ava." he breathed. "Oh, Ava, I have missed you so much."

"I have missed you too my Love. I have dreamed of this moment for so long."

Morgan kissed her hair, her neck, and down between her breasts. "If I am dreaming, I pray I never wake."

"This is no dream." Ianthe whispered.

"Not a dream? But, how?"

Ianthe pressed kisses along his jawline, and smiled in satisfaction when he responded by pulling her closer to him. "Circe relented, a little, and offered us this boon. I may come to you during the new moons, but that is all, and no one must know about it. Not your children, your friends, your servants, no one. Otherwise I will not be able to come to you again."

"Why did you leave me Ava? I love you!"

Ianthe caressed his chest. "I was a fool, and for that I am sorry. I would undo it if I could, but I cannot. I have so little time Morgan, I must be gone before the dawn breaks. Do you want to spend it talking..." In response Morgan rolled, until he was on top of her, Ianthe smiled in approval. "Make love to me Morgan." And he did.

He did not love her just once, but many times throughout the night, each time he spilled his seed outside of her body. "No more babies Ava." Morgan would whisper, but Ianthe was determined that there would be at least one more. The early light of the approaching dawn shown through the windows before she was ready. It was time for her to take her leave. Belle was very specific on that point. If he saw her in the morning light, he would see her as she really was. She scooted to the edge of the bed, trying not to disturb his slumber, and placed her feet on the floor. She was startled when his hands grabbed her around her waist. "Don't go."

He laid his head against her back, and repeated the words. "Don't go Ava, please, stay with me."

Ianthe wanted to scream. Curse that name! Instead she said, "I cannot stay. If I do, I will dissolve into nothingness, and I will be no more. If I go, then I can return to you, on the next new moon."

"Then I will let you go, if you promise to return to me."

"I will promise, if you promise me something in return."

"Anything Ava, you only have to ask it." He sat up, pulling her into his warmth, and he nuzzled her neck.

"Do not fire Ianthe, our nursemaid, ever. It gives me great peace, knowing that she is there to help out with our children."

"If that is your desire, than it shall be so. Ianthe will always have a home here, with us."

"It warms my heart to hear you say so Morgan."

Morgan sat back from her a little, "Your voice Ava, it sounds...different. And your hair..." His voice trailed off, she could feel his stare, his confusion.

"It means I must go, my Love. Even now, this form starts to fade and die with the weak morning light. I must go." She pulled fully away, and ran from the room, nearly tripping over the brat as she did so. "Get out of my way!" she snarled. Behind her she could hear Morgan calling that wretched name, Ava. At least the brat was good for one thing, he slowed his father down, which gave her enough time to get away. She had nearly been discovered, she must be more prudent next time.

Taliesin watched Ianthe scurry away like a rat, he heard his father calling his mother's name as he ran out of the room in a panic. "Papa?" he questioned, which brought Morgan to a halt, and he stared at Taliesin. "Is Mama here? Did the Sea let her go?"

Notes: Family roll is second chance, and I decided to do a a little twist on that. Ianthe is his second chance, if you can call her that, but he thinks she's Ava. Poor Ava, she was never able to shake that depression, and as Gemma noted in a comment last chapter, Siren's Cove shows you what you fear. Ava feared that Morgan had a mistress, and lo and behold, that is what she saw.

Also, just to be clear, Ava the character, still lives, only she has become a Siren, and will draw other men to their deaths. She is *dead* in game, I used the watery grave death on her, lol So at the moment, my sim household consists of Rags (the dog), Morgan, Taliesin, Charis, and Ianthe.

I haven't gone into too much detail yet, I hope to add more in as I go along (and figure it all out myself, lol), but there are 4 types of elementals in this world. Fire, Water, Wind, and Earth. Each person belongs to one or the other in varying degrees of strength, some belong to multiple elements. Each elemental has certain, "powers" for lack of a better word, that go with them. The knowledge of how to wield the elements is passed down from generation to generation. There are also some ancient laws of conduct that they must all abide by. As an example: The Stone Kings of course, belong to the Earth element, and since they were given the task of ruling, it limits what other elementals are able to do to them. A water elemental cannot drown a Stone King for instance, or that will draw the wrath of the Ever Living One. That equals bad, haha!

Lord Ember (Belle's father) is a Fire Elemental, and so far has not passed down all of his knowledge to his daughter, or to his grandson. Belle does possess some power, using her Fire element to heat up herbs and things, so she can create potions and charms and the like.

I did not create all of the Sirens. The lovely Ivory(white/black hair) was created by Jenn, yep, the same Ivory that Colin Kahekili falls for. This story was the original reason why I borrowed Ivory to begin with, because I needed some mermaids, lol Then I got to brainstorming, and Ivory ended up with a bigger part in another legacy.

The Siren with the stunning orange hair, Flame Sparks, was created by Rosewin.

The pretty Sadie Sails, the Siren with dark brown hair (braids on side), was created by Kimi.

Wow, this is a really interesting way to deal with the second chance roll; it fits in with the medieval setting and I also like how it introduces more supernatural/magical elements.

I just feel bad for Morgan, I guess at some point he's going to figure out that it's actually Ianthe?

I have a question: why doesn't Belle simply plan to marry her son to Charis? It seems like she's complicating things and endangering Ianthe to do it this way. Is it so she has more control over the situation?